Technology

OPM Security Breach: Who’s Safe?

By Elisabeth Martin (2016), Editor-in-Chief

CYBERSPACE- Recently on the Internet, the term “Espionage,” the act of spying on someone’s activities, has been appearing to users. This illegal practice, primarily seen in lawsuits against corporations and in some cases, the government, can be incredibly dangerous for its victims.

In July, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), the federal agency that manages all the employees of the federal government from Border Patrolmen to Agriculture agents to politicians, suffered a security breach resulting in the compromisation of 21.5 million employees’ personal data, the Washington Post reported. This is a serious and perfect example of an extreme case of espionage, and is putting the personal lives of millions of people in jeopardy.

According to OPM, “The loot includes ‘identification details such as Social Security Numbers; residency and educational history; employment history; information about immediate family and other personal and business acquaintances; health, criminal and financial history; and other details. Some records also include findings from interviews conducted by background investigators and fingerprints. Usernames and passwords that background investigation applicants used to fill out their forms were also stolen.’”

According to ABC News, President Obama and Vice President Biden are completely safe from this breach. The OPM does not handle presidential information.

Unfortunately, there is currently no way to keep personal information completely safe, so breaches of this kind are always open to occurrence.

Five Exciting games that Gamers are Hyped for!

By Turner Gonzalez (2016), Gaming Writer

The Year 2015 is an exciting year for gamers! There are so many new games coming out that it is sometimes hard to keep track of them all. Not to worry though, here is a list of five games that gamers are excited and hyped about.

5. Rising Storm 2: Vietnam (PC) - Rising Storm 2: Vietnam is a sequel to Rising Storm. It is an ultra realistic first person shooter multiplayer game by Tripwire Interactive. It focuses on the Vietnam War rather than World War 2. A lot of Red Orchestra 2/Rising Storm players are very excited for this game. It’s release date has not been announced.

Source: Rising Storm 2 : Vietnam website.

4. Mad Max (Ps4, Xbox One, Pc) - Mad Max is a third person, open world adventure game that is based on the Mad Max “Universe.” It is published by Warner Bros. Interactive and developed by Avalanche Studios. It is set in a post-apocalyptic environment and it’s story is meant to be stand alone, meaning it doesn’t tie in with any of the famous movies. Fans of Mad Max and fans of Driving games will be excited for this game. Mad Max comes out on Sept. 1, 2015.

Source: Games Radar.com

3. Kingdom Hearts 3 ( PS4, Xbox one) - Kingdom Hearts 3 is one of the most anticipated games of the year. It is developed and published by Square Enix. Ever since it was announced at the E3 gaming conference, fans of the series have been going crazy over it. It is suppose to focus on Sora, Donald, and Goofy searching for the seven guardians of light and the “Key To Return Hearts.” This, while King Mickey and Riku search for Previous Keyblade Wielders. Ultimately, Sora and friends will try to stop Master Xehanort and his plan to balance light and darkness. Most, if not all Kingdom Hearts, fans are excited for this.

Source : prnewswire.com

2. Star Wars Battlefront (PS4, Xbox one, PC) - Star Wars Battlefront is a first or third shooter game based on the Star Wars Universe. It is developed and published by E.A. It is not considered a sequel to the previous games, but rather a reboot. You can play as one of the Rebels or the Empire as well as characters from the films. There will also be many maps and planets that a player will be able to play on like Hoth, Endor and Tatooine. The game has multiplayer and offline co-op missions, but it does not have a campaign mode. Despite that, many fans of Star Wars and many fans of FPS games will be excited for this game. It comes out in Nov. 17, 2015.

Sources : starwars.ea.com and playstationlifestyle.net

1. Fallout 4 ( PS4, Xbox One, PC) - Fallout 4 is debatably the most hyped game of the year. It is a first and third person open world, action role-playing game. It is developed and published by Bethesda Game Studios and Bethesda Softworks. The game takes place 200 years after “The Great War,” which is a war that caused a nuclear holocaust in 2077. It’s also set in Boston, Massachusetts. Unlike the other games, Fallout 4’s story starts the day the bombs dropped and nuclear holocaust began. It’s gameplay is suppose to be similar to Fallout 3 and is suppose to include the V.A.T.S. combat mechanic. Overall, Fallout fans will be excited for this and most gamers in general will be too. It is scheduled to come out in Nov. 10 2015.

Source : Fallout4.com and IGN.com

Review: 60 Seconds! is an Apocalyptic Game Worth a Look

By Turner Gonzalez (2016), Gaming Writer60 Seconds! is a PC game. It’s plot focuses on a man named Ted, his wife Dolores, daughter Mary Jane, and son Timmy. After a nuclear war breaks out, Ted and his family are forced to survive in a fallout shelter for as long as they can before they are rescued by the military or die during raids, or from dehydration, starvation or other dangers of the wasteland.

60 Seconds! is a dark comedy, point-and-click game for the PC, developed by Robot Gentleman, an independent game studio in Poland.The game offers four modes of play and three difficulties. The difficulties include “Little Boy” (Easy), “Fat Man” (Normal) and “Tsar Bomba” (Hard). Game modes include “Atomic Drill,” a tutorial walkthrough of the game, and “Apocalypse,” a survival mode in which the player scavenges around their character’s house for supplies and attempts to survive in a fallout shelter for as long as possible. Another mode, “Scavenge,” features the same format, without the survival in a fallout shelter element. The final mode, “Survival,” puts the player in the fallout shelter with random supplies. When playing in the fallout shelter, players must force their characters to perform a number of tasks, including rationing food, water, and medicine. Players are also able to use their tools and supplies for encounters with survivors, raiders, and deformed mutants. The game has multiple endings, since characters can die if they are not properly cared for. Overall, 60 Seconds! is an enjoyable game. The game boasts a creative, dark, and comedic art style, and the game modes are enjoyable, engaging and manage to keep the player on the edge of their seat. While some may consider 60 Seconds! to be short, the creators at Robot Gentleman are planning to release a free DLC with more content in the future. The game is available for $9.99 on Steam, which makes it an affordable title that is worth looking into.